If his mother hadn't been focused on getting a dentist for his brother, who had six rotted teeth.

By the time Deamonte's own aching tooth got any attention, the bacteria from the abscess had spread to his brain, doctors said. After two operations and more than six weeks of hospital care, the Prince George's County boy died. Deamonte's death and the ultimate cost of his care, which could total more than $250,000, underscore an often-overlooked concern in the debate over universal health coverage: dental care.

This should not happen in this country. This should not be allowed to happen in the United States of America. Read the rest of this article, and feel shame. And get angry. And then get busy.

- Withdraw all the troops from Iraq over the next three months. End the war there. Start negotiating a long-term solution to the issues in that part of the world. Yes, talk to the bad guys. And stop flushing those tax dollars down the toilet.

- Repeal Bush's tax cuts for those making over $125,000 a year. Put that money into health care.

- Slap a five dollar flat federal tax on cigarettes and on alcohol purchases. Put that money into health care.

- Change the system in Washington that allows outfits like Big Pharma and the insurance industry to BRIBE our lawmakers into passing the laws THEY want.

- Institute a single-payer health care system that supplies, as you said, a baseline standard of coverage, INCLUDING dental and vision care, which are especially important for kids.

Umm, no, I didn't say that, but I'm not surprised at that response. I never said anything about vehicle allowances or entertainment allowances. This is about health care.

I just happen to believe that health care should be a right and not seen as being a privilege which is affordable only to the upper class. We need to change this. If we are truly "pro-life," we should first be concerned with the life and health of living, breathing persons. EVERY PERSON in this country should have access to the same quality of health care given to members of Congress and lobbyists. Period.

dave,it's also hard to get good behavioral/mental health care w/Medicaid, too.

and wayne, way to reiterate the whole "health care for all is the most socialist thing evar!" argument without once addressing the really shameful issues behind this country's pitiful system of social provision--the suffering of people like this precious child.

Sarah - My point is that the government should not be the teat for the people to suckle on.

But you are right about one thing.....Christians, not the government should be the ones helping out here.

Did she seek out the local church for help? If she would have come to my church we would have been there for her as we are hundreds of people each year. That's what Christians do (are supposed to do anyway).

Tax and spend are not bad ideas if what you spend the money on is worthwhile. Having the government tax money from everyone into a vast pool can result in significant savings. Its called 'economy of scale.'

Why do economic conservatives not see that collectivisation in and of itself is not evil? Isn't the pooling of wealth to achieve economy of scale the very reason behind the concept of the corporation? But somehow the blind eye gets turned towards the similarities - agribusiness is automatically deemed better than a farmers' co-op. And what then is the difference in corporate collectives? That only a very few of the participants benefit, and the rest lose - the customers, the employees, even the stockholders sacrifice to the greed of the CEOs.

It has been said that a society's state of civilization can best be judged by the way it treats those least well off. By this yardstick the U.S.A. hovers somewhere between barbarism and savagery.